Green Against Leather
by Fan of U
Summary: 'Thank goodness Michelangelo is not here to see this. The sight of his brothers hostility would truly scare him.'He thought.
1. Out of Control

For as long as he's known his sons, he doesn't believe he has ever seen them in such a state. Their behavior and attitude was so...feral. He almost didn't recognize them as soon as he saw them. They were giving off so much anger towards their enemy, it frightened him just how brutal they were fighting. Splinter sighed.

He was going to have to fix the training dummy...again...

'Thank goodness Michelangelo is not here to see this. The sight of his brothers hostility would truly scare him.'He thought.

At first, he wasn't so worried. It was actually quite amusing to him. Seeing his three sons battling with such nonsense was pretty comical. Especially, when his youngest was completely bewildered by it all. He thought the situation wasn't so serious, though...he thought the problem would have been solved by now...

He has never been so wrong in his life.

Donatello, his second youngest, was now a living time bomb just threatening to explode. Raphael, his second oldest, has become a living menace to, not only towards his "enemy", but to himself as well. Leonardo, his oldest, was the last one to be affected. Yet, it hit him the hardest, turning him into an emotional and dangerous mess.

Their feelings have gotten too far for them to control. The more and more he looked at them, the less they looked like his sons. He had to do something about this. He had to do something quick! If not...

Leatherhead wasn't going to be the only one hurt...


	2. Stop the Violence

To StoryBoArdist:This chapter will be longer And so will the future ones too.

To I'm awesome and y'all know it:Can't say anything or else I'll spoil it, but you will find out soon.

Thanks for everyone who review, follow, and or favorite this story. It's really appreciated.

* * *

"My sons."Splinter said in a soft, but serious, tone. Looking over his sons, who appeared to not have heard him, he sighed."My sons."He said a bit louder, but to no avail. They were so out of control, so blinded by anger, he had to try another way to get their attention.

"Leonardo! Raphael! Donatello! Stop this fighting at once!"He yelled. Their reactions, however, were not quite what he expected.

They looked at him with wild eyes. The burning rage within them not leaving once. They were panting almost heavily, eyes twitching in anger, snarling with such aggression. He wished that this was all just a nightmare, some horrible illusion, or maybe even his old mind playing cruel tricks on him. He knew it wasn't any of those, though.

But, just to make sure...

"Ow!"The three turtles screamed out and rubbed their heads. Splinter usually smiled whenever he did this to his sons, it was kind of funny, but this was a very serious situation. There was no time to smile. He hoped that there would be, though. Hopefully, in the end of all this chaos.

"What did ya do that for?!"Raph asked loudly.

"Oh, I don't know. What did you do that for?"Splinter questioned, pointing his cane at the, beyond repair, dummy laying helplessly on the floor. His sons looked where his cane pointed and didn't say a word. Instead, they just kept looking at it with a glare and clenched their fists tight. He was surprised they hadn't broken their weapons.

Splinter shook his head."My sons, listen to me. These pointless acts of violence has to stop. Now!"He spoke sternly. His sons cringed at the tone of his voice, but still didn't look at him.

He sighed."I hope you three realize that that is not the real Leatherhead."

"Wish it was..."Leo spitefully said just below a whisper.


	3. Family Meeting

Thanks for everyone who review, follow, and or favorite this story. It's really appreciated.

* * *

"Leonardo!"Splinter yelled in shock. He wasn't expecting to hear that. To hear something like that from his oldest son."I cannot believe you would say such a thing. Especially, about our friend."

"Friend?!"Splinter jumped a bit from Donnie's sudden outburst. He looked at his son with a surprise look on his face."He is not our friend! He never was!"Donnie practically growled the last word and pointed his bo staff angrily at his Sensei.

"Donatello! Lower your weapon this instant!"Splinter yelled at him with narrow eyes, challenging him.

Donnie shook his head and realized what he just did. He lowered his bo staff and looked down at the floor, ashamed of his actions."Im sorry Master Splinter."He muttered softly. Splinter sighed.

"No."His sons looked at him in confusion."I am not your Master, or your Sensei at this moment. You three are not my students at the moment either. Right now, I am your father and you are my sons, and we are going to discuss this issue as a family."

His sons nodded, but not withought hesitation, and bowed slighty."Yes father."They all said in unison.

"Now come."He said as he tapped his cane on the floor."Let us sit by the tree and talk about this matter."Walking towards the tree, his sons slowly followed. When they got to their destination, they all sat in a meditation position and none of them said a word.

It was silence for a few minutes until Splinter broke it with a calm voice."Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, I am going to ask you three a few questions. I want all of you to tell me the truth. No nonsense. No lies whatsoever, understood?"

"Yes father."They said in unison once again.

"Good. Now tell me...who is Michelangelo?"

The three hesitated, but Raph spoke eventually."Well, he was our-"He stopped when he received a glare from his father. He quickly corrected himself."I-I mean...he's our baby brother."

"Very good. Now, who is Leatherhead?"Splinter asked, he saw his question made them all tense.

"The enemy."The three said, but regretted it immediately."Ow!"Splinter hit them in the head with his cane...again.

"Wrong!"He yelled."He is our ally, our friend. I said I wanted the truth, but it seems that your anger and jealousy is speaking for all of you. Leatherhead is not the enemy and Michelangelo is still your brother!"

* * *

Any guesses of what happened or whats going on? I'm curious to know what you all think so far. Oh, and happy holidays everyone!


	4. Truth and Reality

To emmelienxd(who apparently has Mikey in custody): Take good care of him!

To starrynight32:Maybe he did...maybe he didn't...

Thanks for everyone who review, follow, and or favorite this story. It's really appreciated.

* * *

He didn't mean to yell at them so harshly. He had no choice, though. His sons were aggravating him to the point where he can feel his own blood boiling inside him.'Their jealousy is clouding their minds with dark thoughts. Their anger blinds them from the truth, the reality of it all.'He thought.

He closed his eyes and sighed. Managing to calm down a bit, he opened his eyes to look at his sons. They all had their head down, most likely in shame."You three have never dealt with a situation like this. It didn't surprise me that none of you knew how to deal with this in the beginning, but I thought you would all have solved it by now."

"We're...we're really sorry father."Leo spoke softly. The other

"We just...we just feel so...betrayed."Donnie said sadly.

"And how do you feel betrayed my sons?"Splinter asked, even though he already knew the answer.

"He took our baby brother father. And...and Mikey..."Raph shook his head."How are we supposed to feel about that?"

"You are to feel foolish."He said quickly, slightly glaring at Raph."You are all to feel foolish."He said as he looked at his other sons, the glare never leaving for a second."To believe in such a ridiculous-"

"It's not ridiculous!"Donnie exclaimed furiously, he stood up and clenched his fists angrily. His eyes burning with rage and pain as he glared at his father."He took our baby brother! He stole him from us!"

"He did no such thing Donatello!"

"Oh yeah?"Raph challenged, standing up by Donnie's side."So where is he father? Where is Mikey huh?!"He yelled at him madly.

Before Splinter could answer, though, Leo did it for him. He stood up as well with his brothers."He's with Leatherhead! He's always with Leatherhead!"He stamped his foot on the floor angrily.

Splinter huffed, feeling annoyed and a headache coming along."Is it so wrong for Michelangelo to be spending time with his friend? Is it?!"He asked loudly. He then took a deep breath to calm himself, before he lost control."The two are just simply 'hanging out' as Michelangelo would say."

"Hanging out with his hero."Leo said scornfully.

"His Leathy."Raph said mockingly.

"His new big brother."Donnie said in disdain.


	5. Ridiculously Grounded

To StoryBoArdist and Tori657:Long chapter challenge(hopefully)accomplished.

To emmelienxd:If you love jealous big brothers, you should hold on to Mikey a bit more.

To Cartoongeek123:That's ok and I'm glad to hear what your theories are.

Thanks for everyone who review, follow, and or favorite this story. It's really appreciated.

* * *

"That's enough!"

The three turtles jumped in fear, their father's voice startling them. He sounded furious, irritated...frightening. They've never seen him so furious at them before. His left eye was twitching, his tail was swaying violently back and forth, and the vein upon his forehead was just threatening to pop at any time. They all gulped nervously.

Oh, they were so going to be grounded...

Splinter grunted, his headache getting worse by the minute, and realizing he lost control of himself for a minute there."I don't want to hear anymore of this! This is just...you three are really..."He grunted again, this was getting too frustrating for him. He got up, turned around silently, and made his way towards the door.

"F-Father?"Leo said nervously.

He stopped at the entrance and spoke in a strangely calm, but scary, voice."You three are not to leave this lair, until you've made peace with your brother, our friend, and yourselves."He heard his sons protest, but ignored them and continued talking."You three are officially grounded."And with that said, he left the room.

A tense silence immediately filled the room. The three sons didn't know what to do. So many different emotions and feelings were clashing inside them. They thought about what their father said to them for several minutes. Leo sighed defeatedly.

"He's right..."He said, looking at his brothers. They looked back at him and nodded.

"All of this is just...ridiculous."Donnie said sadly.

"What have we become?"

"Fools. We've become fools Leo."Raph said gruffly. He walked away from his two brothers and headed straight towards his room."G'night."Leo and Donnie gave each other a confused look, before watching their brother leave.

"But it's not even nigh-"

"I said g'night!"Raph said, interrupting Donnie and slamming the door roughly. Leo and Donnie winced at the loud sound. It was silent in the room once more. Neither of the two remaining turtles said a word, not knowing what to say to each other. Not knowing what to say in a situation like this.

"Hey...Leo?"Donnie said softly after a few second, but Leo didn't respond to him. He was staring at the floor in some kind of a trance."Leo?"Donnie said a little more loudly, trying to snap his brother back to reality. Leo shook his head and blinked, no longer in a trance.

"Yes Don?"He said, looking at him with sad eyes.

"What...what are we going to do?"Donnie asked almost desperately.

"I...I don't know..."Leo said hopelessly as he slowly walked towards his own room."I just dont know."

"Leo?"

"...Yes Don?"He said as he stopped in front of his door.

"Were you...thinking about Mikey? You know...just a moment ago?"He said, twiddling his fingers a bit. Leo didn't answer him, though. Instead, he opened his door and closed it softly. Donnie sighed.

'Mikey...why are you doing this to us?'He thought miserably. His eyes suddenly stung with tears the more he thought of his baby brother. He walked towards his room and opened the door, instantly going to his bed. He lay on his bed and stared at the wall with warm tears streaming down his face.

Donnie whimpered softly."Baby brother..."He whispered sadly and sobbed gently."Why?"He said over and over and over. Even though he kept asking himself this, he knew it wasn't Mikey's fault. At least...not all of it.

As Donnie cried quite noisily, he didn't realize his door opened. He felt a hand rubbing his head gently and immediately knew who it was."Father..."He choked out, looking at Splinter with watery eyes. His father sat down beside him, tenderly whispering words of comfort, while continuously rubbing his head.

"It is ok Donatello...everything is going to be ok."He said, reassuring his son. Donnie cried for a few more minutes until he couldn't cry no more. Splinter noticed this and pulled his son's blanket to tuck him in. He kissed Donnie on the head and stood up to leave his room.

"Sleep peacefully my son."He said as he closed the door quietly. Splinter sighed, hoping everything will be ok...and soon. He couldn't stand the sight of his sons suffering like this. He was going to check up on his other two sons until he heard a familiar voice.

"Hey, everyone I'm back! Anyone miss me?"

'Oh you have no idea Michelangelo...'Splinter thought.


	6. Troubling Matters

To Smile-I'mTheEndOfAllThatYouSee:This story takes place in the 2012 series and yeah Raph saying "fools" is kinda wierd, but I wanted him to repeat what Splinter told him. As for his profanity, it will only be close calls.

Thanks for everyone who review, follow, and or favorite this story. It's really appreciated.

* * *

Mikey walked towards his father and grinned, waving his skateboard at him happily."Hey Splinter! What's up?"As soon as he said those words, though, he saw him sigh. He frowned.

"Did I uh...say something wrong?"

Splinter shook his head."No Michelangelo, you didn't."He said, easing his son's concern."I am just relieved that you have come back."That was partly true. He was relieved, but he was also worried.

"Oh. Really? I wasn't gone that long was I?"

"No, you were not, however, much has happened while you were gone. I'm actually quite surprised you came so soon. I thought you were going to be out a bit longer."

"Yeah, I thought so too. Leathy was kinda tired today, though, so I left early to let him rest. I don't know if he's coming for patrol tonight either."Mikey said, but then realized what Splinter said."Wait, what happened while I was gone?"

Splinter closed his eyes and sighed again, this was what he was worried about. He didn't know if telling him would resolve everything, or make things worse.'This is a troubling matter.'He thought.'How would he take it? How will he handle such a problem?'

"Father?"He opened his eyes to see his son taking a step closer to him. He looked anxious, and sounded like it too."Is everything ok? Hey...where's Donnie, Raph, and Leo?"Mikey twisted his body around and looked to see if he could find them.

He did find a poor, torned up dummy on the floor, though.

'He has to know sooner or later. If his brothers won't take matter into their own hands, then I will.'He thought determinedly. He placed his hand gently on Mikey's shoulder, who turned his head around to look at him and not the dummy, and spoke softly."There is something that your brothers have been keeping from you, something that you failed to notice for quite awhile."

Mikey looked back at the dummy and pointed at it."Did they do that?"Splinter looked where he was pointing and nodded."Sadly, yes. The dummy fell victim to your brothers anger."

"Anger?"Mikey asked, but then his eyes widen in fear."Why are they angry? Is it because of me? Are they angry at me?"

"It's...It's best to tell you everything, Michelangelo. Put away your skateboard and sit with me by the tree. I shall tell you everything that I know, what you don't know...and what your brothers assume."Mikey gulped nervously, but did as what he said. When they were finally sitting, cross legged, by the tree, Splinter looked at Mikey.

"What I am about to tell you my son, is a story about the internal struggle your brothers have been going through. For the past month or so, they have been suffering greatly. Their jealousy overwhelming them to the point of horrifying aggression. I'm going to tell you how it all started...and how it never ended..."

* * *

Sorry, if any of you think this chapter was short. The story Splinter is gonna tell is going to be long. It's going to be told as a flashback, though, so don't get confused!


	7. A Good Idea

Thanks for everyone who review, follow, and or favorite this story. It's really appreciated.

* * *

His ear twitched in suspicion, trying to detect a noise that wasn't there for some odd reason. Something was not right. Everything was...peaceful. The harmony of silence was present in the lair, tranquil and quiet. It was so strange to hear nothing, nothing at all.

He thought about this rare moment under the tree.'Is it possible? Am I actually going to complete one meditation session without-'

"No Mikey!"

"Aw come on, Donnie, it won't happen again!

"Yes it will!"

'...a disturbance.'He sighed.

He opened his eyes to see two of his youngest sons arguing about something while walking towards him. His two oldest sons walking beside them, arguing as well. He shook his head, hoping their disagreement was at least a reasonable one. If not, his cane would surely end it quickly. As his sons slowly approached him, he awaited patiently for the while listening to their dispute.

"Donnie's right Mikey. He can't come here, he might hurt someone...or everyone."

"He won't hurt us, Leo, he's our friend! He said it himself, remember?"

"All I remember is how crazy he gets when we mention about the Kraang."

"Your not helping Raph!"

"And who said I was?"

"Alright, alright. Let's settle this issue once and for all."Donatello said, as he and his brother stopped in front of Splinter."Sensei, could you please tell Mikey that bringing Leatherhead in to the lair is just out of the question. He thought it would be a good idea, but I that we all agree that-"

"It is a good idea."

"Exactly, what we sa-wait, what?!"Donnie exclaimed in shock.

"You can't be serious!"

"Of course he's not Raph...right Sensei?"Leo asked, a little unsure if he was really serious or not.

"Yes...and no."He said, earning confused looks from them."I would like to hear what Michelangelo has to say in his defense. Then I will make my decision."He looked at his youngest son."Please explain to me why you think that bringing Leatherhead here is a good idea."

"He's all alone, Sensei. It'll be fun if came here to, you know, hangout and stuff with his friends!"Mikey said loudly, grinning at him.

Splinter chuckled at his son's good intentions. He knew, however, it did have some consequences to it. He was well aware of Leatherhead's acts of violence, even if they weren't intentionally, the first time he came here. He rubbed his thin beard as he pondered this, thinking if it was truly a good idea or not. He got up all of a sudden and went towards his room, he made his decision.

"I..."He said slowly, purposely making unnecessary suspense for his sons. He tried not to smile at their eager expressions."...still think it's a good idea."This time he couldn't help but crack a smirk at their reactions. Mikey grinned widely while his older brothers had their mouths wide open, not believing what he said.

"What?!"The three oldest asked in unison loudly.

"Alright! Victory dance!"Mikey yelled as he danced around the room in victory.

"Let me explain. While I do believe bringing Leatherhead here might have its consequences, I also believe it is a good opportunity for Michelangelo to show some responsibility. Besides, some company wouldn't hurt us..."He looked at his sons, who gave him a look, and realized what he just said.

"Bad choice of words, nevertheless, he is still our ally, our friend. I want you three to be on your best behaviors when our guest arrives."He turned his head to the dancing turtle."As for you Michelangelo, it's your responsibility to keep your friend in check. Understood?"

"Totally understood Splinter! I'll go get him right now."Mikey said as he's topped dancing and ran out of the lair.

"Very well then, If anyone needs me I'll be continuing my meditation."Splinter said, closing his door softly and leaving the three, slightly disappointed, turtles behind. The turtles had nothing against the mutated alligator. He was a good ally and a good friend. It was his violent outbreaks they just didn't want to deal with.

Especially, one turtle in particular.

"He's going to grab me by the face...he's going to grab me by the face! Again!"Donnie screamed, panicking.

"Don't worry Donnie, maybe he'll give you a break."Leo said, reassuring him and placing a hand on his shoulder to calm him down.

"Or maybe not."Raph said, smirking.

"You really aren't helping today Raph."Donnie said.

"Again, who said I was?"He said, walking away from the two and headed to the pinball machine. The two followed and watched him pet Spike, who was on the top of the machine for some reason, before he played the game."What do you think he's gonna do here anyways, you know, other than stretching the ugly off your face."He chuckled. Donnie groaned in exasperation.

"Ok, seriously, there is nothing wrong with my face!"

"Cut it out Raph...although, you do have a point."

"Leo!"

"What? Oh no, I'm not talking about your face Donnie."Leo chuckled."I'm talking about what Raph said before that. What will he do?"

"Oh. Well, since Mikey is practically in charge of him and most likely to spend time with him the most, he's probably going to do whatever he does."

"Like messing with ya or your lab experiments."Raph said, smirking again.

Donnie's eyes widen in fear."My face!"He yelled as he held his face protectively."My lab!"He screamed, running towards the lab in a desperate hurry. Raph, who stopped playing the game for a moment, watched his brother panic and laughed.

"That wasn't funny Raph."

"You sure 'bout that?"

"...Ok, it was a bit funny...just a little bit."He admitted, laughing along with Raph. Spike, who was watching the two, looked like he was thinking that it was funny too as a smile was present on his face. Neither of them knew, though, that Donnie's panic was soon to be turned into something else. No one could have known what he was about to become...

What he was going to become...


	8. New and Improved

To ducky mikey: Bad cliffhanger in a good way?(It was pretty obvious what would happen next, though...)

To CyberPunkAlchemist247:The flashback is going to be a lot of chapters. All in one go would've been too much for one chapter.

Thanks for everyone who review, follow, and or favorite this story. It's really appreciated.

* * *

"We're gonna have so much fun Leatherhead."

"Fun?"

"Yeah fun!"Mikey said, smiling brightly at him. He noticed Leatherhead didn't return it, though. In fact, the mutant alligator looked pretty confused as he just stared at his turtle friend with a blank expression. Mikey's mouth hung wipe open in shock, realizing something unbelievable.

"You don't know what fun is?!"

"Mikey!"

"Sorry Donnie."Mikey grinned sheepishly. He forgot that Donnie was sitting on the couch, tinkering with some sort of device, and asked him to try to be quiet. To him, Donnie was acting weird. Why? One reason being that he usually did his tinkering business in his lab. Second reason is that...really?

Did Donnie just seriously ask him to try to be quiet?

"Why can't you do that in your lab?"

'Because I don't want you and Leatherhead to destroy my precious lab.'He thought.

He could have said that out loud, but thought best not to. He didn't want to be rude to their guest. Most importantly, he didn't want to insult Mikey. His brother would think that he didn't trust him to take responsibility. Despite losing, breaking, or misplacing a bunch of his experiments many times before, he had faith that this time his brother would succeed in taking this responsibility seriously...for once...

"Oh...no reason."He said and chuckled nervously. Managing to stay focus again, he turned his attention back to his little device. Donnie sighed, relieved that Mikey didn't question it any further and continued to talk to his friend. He was also relieved that his face hasn't been grabbed violently. Then again...he couldnt get his hopes up so soon...

Leatherhead did just get here.

"You really don't know what fun is?"Mikey asked. Leatherhead shook his head."Fun is when you're having a real good time. You know, like playing video games, watching tv, and a lot of other stuff. Hey, you listen to jazz music right?"

"Yes."

"That's fun! Well, to you anyways. I'm not much of a jazz fan, but I do like music. Have you ever tried dancing? Can you dance to jazz music?"He asked the last question mostly to himself.

"I have never danced before Michelangelo."

"I'd totally teach you dude. Sensei is meditating, though, and you do not want to disturb him when he's meditation."He shivered slightly, remembering how loud he played his music one time. He received a warning and only a warning. Yet, it was enough to make the young turtle tremble in fear.

'So much training...so many sessions.'He thought.

"Aw man!"

"Whats wrong Donnie?"

"I'm trying to fix the TV remote."

"That's the TV remote?"Mikey said as he made his way to the couch, sitting next to Donnie. Leatherhead walked to the couch as well, however, he decided not to sit. There wasn't anymore room...and he didn't think the couch would support him either. He looked at the remote curiously.

"I've made a few adjustments."He said defensively."It's waterproof now and less likely to break."

"That's cool and all, but does it really have to look so weird?"

"It doesn't look weird...it's new and improved. And It's frustrating!"He shook the remote a bit angrily and sighed."It's supposed to be anyway. I can't seem to make it work and I don't know why. Until I know how to make it function properly, we're going to have to use the TV manually."

He sighed again.'I've fixed, improved, and upgraded so many things...why can't I adjust a simple TV remote?!'He yelled at himself mentally.

"May I take a look?"

Donnie looked at Leatherhead with a surprised look then chuckled."Heh heh, I'm sorry Leatherhead. No offense, but the technology I used to enhance the device is quite advance and pretty difficult to comprehend if you're not sure what to-"He stopped talking as he noticed he wasn't hold the remote anymore."...do." Instead, Leatherhead was holding it and appeared to be trying to fix it.

'Must have taken it while I was talking.'Donnie thought.

In a matter of seconds, Leatherhead handed back the device to Donnie and smiled."Try it now."He said.

Donnie hesitated, not really sure if it was going to work or not, but clicked the power button anyway. To his astonishment, the TV turned on."What?!"He looked at the remote, back to the TV, then finally settled his eyes on Leatherhead."How did you do that?"

"That's so cool Leatherhead!"Mikey exclaimed and took the remote out of Donnie's hand. He threw it on the ground and picked it up excitedly."It didn't break!"He ran in to the kitchen quickly, grabbed a cup of water, and went back to his brother and friend. Dropping the remote into the cup, he grinned and turned off the TV."It's waterproof!"

Mikey gave Donnie the wet remote and looked at him with a bright smile."Now it's new and improved."He looked at Leatherhead and gave him a pat on the back."Good job Leatherhead. You're really smart."

"Thank you Michelangelo."

At that moment, something triggered inside of Donnie. He felt...strange all of a sudden and he didn't know why. It was a weird feeling that he couldn't put his finger on it. It was familiar, yet foreign in a way. What was it?

"Hey...I...put it all together."He said a little defensively.'Where's my good job? Why don't I get a compliment? Wait...what am I thinking?'

"Yeah, but Leatherhead here made it work."

"Ok, but he...well I..."He trailed off, not knowing what to say.'He wouldn't have made it work if I didn't have trouble with it. That's a terrible excuse! Hold on, why am I thinking like this?'

"Aren't you going to say thank you dude?"Mikey asked Donnie.

'No. I don't. I could have made the remote function...eventually.'He shook his head.'I'm thinking ridiculously irrational...and rude.'He cleared his throat.

"Thank you Leatherhead. That was very impressive."He admitted honestly."How did you figure it out, though? I used Kraang technology to create those adjus-"He stopped himself, realizing what he just said...what he just done. His eyes widen in fear.

"Kraaaaaaang!"

"Not the face!"


	9. Thanks and Apologies

Thanks for everyone who review, follow, and or favorite this story. It's really appreciated

* * *

'Why did I say that?! Why?!'Donnie mentally screamed in horror. He was absolutely terrified of the violent face grabbing he was about to literally, and no pun intended, face. As a ninja, he used one of the ultimate ninja moves that would surely protect him from the claws of painful stretching.

This ultimate ninja move was called...The Running in Fear technique.

"What is going on here?!"Splinter yelled as soon as he entered the room. Leo and Raph came in a few seconds later with their weapons held tightly. The two were about to go and save Donnie until their sensei held out his arms, stopping the two."No."He said in a calm tone.

"But Sensei, Leatherhead-"

"Is Michelangelo's responsibility. Let us see what he does first and if it goes wrong, we will intervene."

Leo and Raph hesitated, but gradually let their grips on their weapons loosen. They silently watched as Donnie ran for his life around the couch, Leatherhead only a grip away from catching him. Mikey did nothing to stop it, though. Instead, he watched the chase as well with a blank face.

"Kraaaaaaang!"

"Is anyone going to help me?!"Donnie screamed in terror.

"Splinter!"

"Patience Raphael."

Suddenly, Mikey went up to the couch and climbed it to the top. As he stood on top of the couch, his eyes looked intensely at Leatherhead. Focusing as much as he could, he prepared himself to save his brother. He just hoped he didn't get hurt in the process. He bent his legs, raised his arms, and jumped on his target.

He landed right where he wanted to be...on Leatherhead's back. Leo, Raph, and Donnie, who stopped running when he realized he was no longer being chased, immediately knew what he was doing. He was doing the exact same thing he did when he let him loose. Grabbing his friend's head firmly, he started to pet him gently. Saying soothing words and massaging him every now and then too.

"Calm down buddy! Cleansing breaths, cleansing breaths, cleansing breaths."

Leatherhead took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. He did this a few times and calmed down greatly. Mikey got off of him and gave him some space."You ok Leatherhead? Everything's ok right?"

"Yes I'm ok...everything is ok now, Michelangelo. Thank you once again."

Mikey grinned."No biggie, it was nothing."

"But it was something."Mikey turned around and saw Splinter walking towards him, his two oldest brothers following him."It is a little something called control. You stayed calm during a hectic situation and handled it very well. You took responsibility, well done Michelangelo."

"Thanks Splinter."

"One question, though, how did this happen?"

Mikey looked at Donnie, who grinned nervously at him, and everyone else did the same. All eyes were on him now."Heh heh. Well, I...uh...said the word."

"What word?"Donnie went up to his sensei and wisely, whispered in his ear. He didn't understand. He gave his son a questionable look."The Kraang?"

"Kraaaaaaang!"

"Not again!"Donnie screamed and hid behind his sensei. Splinter now understood and took a side step, revealing a cowering turtle. Donnie opened his eyes and noticed that he wasn't being protected anymore. Splinter raised an eyebrow at him.

"Heh heh...sorry Sensei."

"I'm sorry as well."Leather said while Mikey was petting him on the head again."I let myself out of control again...I'm sorry for what I have done."

"It is alright my friend. No one got hurt and I would like to apologize also."

"What for Sensei?"Leo asked.

"For calling him a monster."Splinter said as he looked at Leo. He turned his attention back to the mutant alligator."When we first met, I thought you were a monster. Michelangelo thought you had potential, however, and I realized that he was right. You have deep scars, but a genuine heart Leatherhead. Now I see you, not as a monster, but a friend and an ally. My humble apologies."

Leatherhead smiled."Thank you. Apology excepted."

"Yeah! Alright! We're all buddies now!"Mikey cheered. He grabbed the remote and went towards Splinter, Leatherhead followed him."Look Sensei, he fixed the remote. He has a genuine heart and smarts!"

Splinter chuckled."Is that so?"He said as he walked towards the dojo."Yeah!"Mikey said, walking with his father on one side and Leather on the other. He kept talking about it until they reached the dojo and went inside, leaving three turtles behind.

"Got to admit, Mikey did a pretty good job."

Raph nodded."Yeah he did."

"Did you hear that?"The two looked at Donnie, who was looking at the dojo entrance, and watched him use a mocking tone."He has a genuine heart and smarts...ha! That's nothing compared to m-"Donnie stopped talking when he noticed he was receiving strange looks from his brothers."What?"

* * *

Leatherhead wasn't introduced much in the series, not enough for me, in my opinion, to get his character spot on. Am I doing a good job? Let me know, some advice or suggestions are welcomed and grateful.


End file.
